A sculptor wields
The chisel and the stricken marble
grows
To Beauty...
So runs an old poem. The art of sculpture is indeed fascinating: with his chiseled touch, the sculptor hews a living shape out of old, lifeless stone, shaping, moulding, carving a thing of beauty out of cold marble.
The educationist and philosopher, Bertrand Russell, makes a very interesting observation about `individuals'. He says that an individual is rather like a billiard ball - which only knows how to collide with other billiard balls! The point he is trying to make is that too much of 'individualism' only sets men on a collision course against each other. A man who believes in his own individuality will find it difficult to cooperate with others and work with them for a common goal. Therefore, our spiritual teachers believed that true growth comes from moulding personality rather than just individuality.
Sanskrit and Hindi use two modified forms for individuality and personality: vyaktitva stands for individuality, while vikasita vyaktitva stands for personality.
When young people from diverse backgrounds come to your class, many of them are yet to develop a sense of individuality. Teachers first need to give them this sense of individual worth and dignity. But if we stop at this stage, our work will not be complete: an individual is likely to remain rigid, self-opinionated and self centred for life - a billiard ball, ready to clash with other billiard balls.
May be this is what is happening in this so-called age of LPG - an age of materialism, sought to be achieved through Liberalisation, Privatisation and Globalisation. We are ready to stress our rights and fight for what we feel is our due. But we lack social responsibility, civic awareness and emotional maturity.
These qualities can only come from the development of personality - and therefore, I emphasise the teacher's role as a sculptor who shapes and moulds the individual into a wholesome personality.
How will you shape, sculpt, mould the individual into a wholesome, vibrant personality? We speak a lot about Human Resource Development and HR Management today. Can I put it to you - the entire future Human Resource of this country is seated in the classrooms of teachers, across the length and breadth of this country! And it is the teacher, who is a living role-model before them.
The teacher can shape them for their benefit and the nation's benefit. He can inculcate virtues and graces in them through precept and example. He can enrich their lives by giving them values.
Education should not stop with promoting physical and intellectual growth; these must lead to character development - only then does the cold, lifeless marble, become alive, beautiful and striking! The 'individual' learns to devote his excess strength, knowledge and power, to serve the nation, to serve other people, to serve the world at large; he ceases to be self-centered. He becomes service-centered!
This is the most important task before teachers today: sculpting, shaping, moulding our youth into socially responsible citizens; making them good human beings imbued with the virtues of sincerity, committment, dedication, service and sacrifice.
A UNESCO Report of Education had the significant title: Learning To Be. Please take note - Learning To Be, not learning to do or learning to make – this constitutes the essence of true education: the art of living, the science of true life; not just the art of living in peace with yourself, but the art of living with people; serving people; helping people; and contributing one's best to social and national growth. This is the essence of education as expressed by Swami Vivekananda: "Be and Make!"
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